Alexa app on iOS, displaying its -Choose Echo Dot Version to Set Up- page, with the -3rd Generation- option highlighted.
This piece shows how to connect Amazon Alexa speakers to a WiFi network. It lists what you’ll need to get your Alexa up and running on the internet. You need to do this when you first buy a brand new speaker, when someone gifts you a used one, or when you change settings on your wireless router, such as network SSID name or the password.
Make sure you have the following…
None of the Alexa speakers built to this point has an Ethernet RJ45 port that we know of. So, you may only connect them to the internet via an in-range WiFi network.
If you do not already have an Amazon account, create a new one at https://amazon.com/ . Follow the prompts there to set one up.
Or, when you run the Alexa app in Step 2 under How to Connect Echo Dot 3rd Generation to WiFi, Step-by-Step below, and you’ve never signed into the app with a valid account, the app will ask you to sign in, as shown next.
There, Amazon allows you to create a new account if you need one. If you do, then press the Create a New Amazon Account button in the lower center portion of the login screen. Then, the app walks you through that account setup screen prompts. At any rate, be sure you have a working Amazon account before proceeding.
You must run the Alexa app on a compatible smart phone or tablet computer. For this demo, we run it on an iPad Air tablet.
Download this app from the Google Play (Android) store, or the App Store (iOS), depending on what type of mobile device you have. Download and install the appropriate version on your tablet, and log into it with your Amazon account credentials.
Please turn Bluetooth on on your mobile device, because the app uses Bluetooth to discover nearby Amazon Alexa speakers. So, switch on Bluetooth on this device on to connect an Echo Dot to WiFi.
Skip ahead to the next step if you already unboxed your speaker.
Now most Amazon Alexa speakers come in a cyan or blue box, as shown in the last shot above. For new speakers, the box itself arrives in a clear plastic bag. Remove that outer bag, and cut the tape that holds the box top closed, with a sharp knife.
Next, open the box lid, take out all contents and spread them on a larg, dry, and flat surface. You should have the speaker, the power adapter, and some info pamphlets.
Remove any plastic protectors from the side and top of the speaker. This exposes the DC power input. It also allows access to the volume up-down, mic mute, and wake buttons (top).
Then, unpack the AC adapter and cable.
Find this app on your mobile device, as we did on our iPad Air tablet, as shown in the next picture.
Tap the Alexa app icon to run it. If this is your first time running the app, it will prompt you for your Amazon account and password.
Furthermore, if this is your first device, the app will prompt you to set up a new device.
Should the app prompt, enter your Amazon account credentials. Follow the instructions above to create a new Amazon account if you don’t already have one. Then you’ll be signed in via the app. The app then remembers your Amazon account info the next time you run it. This way, you won’t have to enter this data every time.
If this speaker is not that first device connected via your Amazon account, the app displays its Home screen.
Find this called out by the green arrow in the last picture.
Hitting the menu button brings up the main menu, as shown next.
Visit the Settings page by tapping the Settings menu item (left side of screen), highlighted by the green arrow in the last picture.
The Settings the screen shows as follows.
Get to the Device Settings page by tapping the Device Settings menu item (left side of the Settings screen, near the top), highlighted by the green arrow in the last screenshot.
Tapping Device Settings brings up the All Devices screen, which lists all your currently registered speakers and other devices. Shown next.
Bring up the Set Up New Device menu by tapping the Plus button in the top right corner of the All Devices page, as highlighted by the green arrow in the last photo above.
The Set Up New Device menu then pops up as shown in the next screenshot.
Touching the Add Device option brings up the Setup->What type of device are you setting up? screen, as shown next. In this demo, we’re going to set up an Echo Dot 3 as our Amazon Alexa speaker.
Tapping the Amazon Echo item brings up the first Setup screen for Echo devices, as shown next, where you pick which model of Alexa you’re connecting. As mentioned, we connect an Echo Dot gen 3 to WiFi here. So, we’ve pointed out the Echo Dot option with a green arrow in the next screen shot.
Touching the Echo Dot device brings up the Which Echo Dot are you setting up? screen, as shown next.
If your Amazon Alexa is powered up, as it should be if you did Step 2 above, it’s probably showing its orange light ring. If so, then skip ahead to Step 14. Or if not, then run through this step.
If this is a brand new speaker, just plug it into AC power. Then after ten to fifteen seconds, it automatically enters Setup mode and says this.
But, if this is not a new one, it may not instantly go into Setup mode. For that case, you need to factory reset it. See our Factory Reset Echo Dot 3rd Generation Instructions, How To post. That piece shows how to reset a Dot. In short, to reset, press and hold the Action button until the unit starts resetting. After a hard reset, the Echo Dot automatically enters Setup mode.
In short, how ever you get there, once you have your speaker in Setup mode, move on to the next step.
Next. pick up your tablet / phone again and go back to the Alexa app. You should see the screen shown in Step 12 above.
Since we’re connecting an Amazon Dot speaker here, we touch the topmost speaker in the displayed list of Dot versions shown there.
This starts the app scanning for new devices to connect, as shown next.
Now at this point, the app waits to hear from the speaker you’re connecting. It will hear it when you place your Amazon Alexa into Setup mode, it is when captured in the next picture.
If your speaker is indeed in Setup mode, then after a brief pause, the app should find it, as ours did, shown next.
If the app does not find your speaker, check that you have Bluetooth turned on on your mobile device that’s running the Alexa app. Check also that your speaker is flashing its light ring in orange. Note that an Amazon Alexa only stays in Setup mode for several minutes, and times out after that. If timeout happens, then unplug the speaker from power for a few seconds and plug it back in. This should re start Setup mode. If not, then hard reset it.
This brings up the Select your Wi-Fi Network page, as shown next.
Just prior to showing this screen, the app runs a WiFi scan from your selected speaker, for in-range WiFi networks that your speaker sees. Then, it’s this list that the app displays for you.
Tap the new WiFi network you want your speaker to log into. In our case, we’re choosing the 937T681J4059H_2G_Guests network. That one is pointed out by the green arrow in the last picture.
We call this a new WiFi network, because its login data is not currently saved to Amazon. If we had connected any speakers to this network before, and opted at that time to save the login credentials, then later Alexa models like the 3rd generation Dot would automatically connect to it, without us having to manually enter the network info.
Tapping a WiFi network may prompt you to enter the password for that network. Skip to Step 18 if you don’t see this prompt.
Should a password entry screen appear, tap in the correct WiFi password for the network you picked. Then move on to the next step.
While your speaker makes a connection to the WiFi network you selected in Step 15 above, the app shows the Connecting your Echo Dot to Wi-Fi screen, as pictured next.
After some seconds, and if all goes as hoped, you see the following screen. This shows that the smart speaker successfully connected to your WiFi.
Also, the speaker then makes a rising chime sound, and says that it’s ready for use.
But if yours does not connect and you get errors, follow any directions the app displays. If you typed in the wrong password, the system prompts you to re-enter it. But if the problem connecting is network related, you may have to look into that, and troubleshoot it on your router.
In that case, once you’ve fixed that issue, try rerunning this WiFi connection procedure again. We suggest that you close the Alexa app and start it fresh, first. Then, be sure that your speaker is in Setup mode before doing the routine again.
Hitting the Continue strip then invites you to choose which speaker your smart Alexa speaker will play through, as shown next.
In our demo, we chose the internal speaker.
Then, tapping this choice takes you to the Where is your Echo Dot screen, as pictured next. This screen allows you to name the location in your home where you will place your Amazon Alexa.
Pick the name of your desired location from the list displayed, as shown in the last picture. Here, we tapped Bedroom, as shown in the last photo. Note the check mark that appears when you make a choice, as pointed at by the green arrow in the next shot.
Once you bump the Continue strip, your speaker has successfully connected to the WiFi network, and is now ready to answer voice commands.
Then, the app takes you back to its Home screen, as shown next.
You may now close the app if you wish.
With your speaker now connected to a WiFi network, try asking it some questions, like:
… and so on. Of course, precede each question with your wake word. The default is Alexa. Or it could be Computer, Amazon, or Echo if you changed it.
You have now managed to connect your Alexa smart speaker to a WiFi network.
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